Christmastime is Here
by SliverOfHope
Summary: An Avatar Secret Santa gift to Manthagirl on tumblr. Summary: Mako has a plan involving enormous gift boxes, freezing weather, and the homeless park kids. Bolin, Korra, and Asami get dragged along much to their delight.


This was written as a secret santa gift to Manthagirl over on tumblr. :3 (For the Avatar Secret Santa event 2013.) :3 The gifts were due today (Jan. 14th, 2013) and I got this done just in time. ;D I don't think it's my very best work, but I think it's cute so there's that.

**No ships. No warnings. Rated K**.  
I don't own Korra, Bolin, Asami, or Mako.

* * *

The air was cold in Republic City, and most of the citizens had taken to their homes for shelter against the winter blizzard. The city filled with sleet and frosty snowflakes rapidly, leaving the homeless scrambling for whatever bits of shelter they could find. It seemed that it wouldn't be a proper Christmas for them; they'd be too busy avoiding hyperthermia and frostbite. The phrase "Jack Frost nipping at your nose" was no exaggeration for this day. Gusting winds swirled fallen snow back up into the frigid air, forcing it every which way and making the temperature drop even more though it seemed impossible.

Empty streets braced against the storm, and even the buildings themselves seemed to hunker down against the wind. The gray sky seemed to have an endless amount of chilly precipitation to let loose on the earth below, and it seemed keen to keep it up throughout the holiday.

Bolin wasn't entirely sure why he Mako, Korra, and Asami were trudging outside in the sketchiest bits of Republic City, but Mako had promised that it was worth it. Trusting his brother, Bolin came along, nose running, eyes tearing, and body shaking pathetically as he carried hideously wrapped gifts boxes. It was only on that day did the four teens find out that they were positively dreadful at gift wrapping.

"Couldn't we wait until the storm lets up?" Bolin questioned, peering around an enormous stack of presents. "And even so, who are these presents for?"

Mako shook his head. "We do it now or not at all." A slight smile graced his lips. "These are for the kids in the park."

"The homeless ones?" Bolin asked. A warm feeling settled in his stomach. This was all Mako's idea, really, and the rest of them had just gone along with it feeling charitable and joyful, much like the nature of the holiday itself. Mako was pretty discreet about the presents and who they were supposed to go to, however, and he hadn't mentioned the recipients until Bolin had pestered him for about the twelfth time that day.

Korra and Asami beamed while Mako responded with, "Of course!"

The Earthbender let out a cheerful laugh. "Oh, Mako, you _do_ have a soft side!"

Mako, though carrying just as many presents as Bolin, made an annoyed sound and managed to elbow his brother in the side. "Watch it, Bolin," he grumbled, face passive, and a smirk threatening to appear.

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say, dearest brother of mine." Bolin paused before adding, "Mako Claus."

Needless to say, the four teens arrived at the park much faster than they'd originally planned due to the two brothers chasing each other the entire way, leaving Korra and Asami struggling to pick up their dropped presents and racing to catch up with them. By then, the sun – or whatever constituted as the sun that day – had long since decided to set, and bits of red and purple could be seen amongst the dreary gray sky. The snow had let up only a little bit, but the wind had died down considerably.

The park, however, was completely devoid of any sort of life. Staring, the four teens waited around a bit. When nothing came out of the bushes or trees, Asami fidgeted before saying, "Okay, now what?"

Mako clucked his tongue. "I have an idea," he said, placing the few presents he was still holding on Bolin's small stack. He steadied himself and spread his legs a bit before slapping his hands together with a loud resounding pop. Flames shot up above his head, forming into a fiery Christmas tree before sparking and exploding into embers. "That should get their attention," he responded haughtily.

Sure enough, little heads popped out from various hiding spots in the park and the pitter patter of tiny shoes worked its way over to the four teenagers. Soon, children of all shapes and sizes surrounded them. Many were bedraggled and sickly. Most had little to no winter clothing and shivered under layers of short sleeves and ripped scarves. Bolin felt his heart ache at the sight, knowing all too well exactly what that felt like.

His firsthand experience as a street kid wasn't pleasant or happy. He remembered awful things happening to his brother and himself. They were robbed, beaten, yelled at, made fun of, and nearly anything else a heartless person could do to two homeless kids. They'd begged for scraps of food, and even resorted to filching little pittances in order to keep themselves from dying of starvation. Idly, Bolin pondered whether or not some of these poorly wrapped gifts were food supplies that the kids could last on for a while.

"Hey kiddos," Korra greeted. Her voice was light and musical, beckoning the children closer. She crouched down. "How is your Christmas this year?"

A little girl Bolin guessed to be about seven or eight sniffled and looked at them with sad eyes. "It's been bad, miss." She gestured to the other twenty or so kids around her. "We haven't had any presents or meals or anything Christmassy." Her lip trembled. "Santa didn't even come to see us!"

Another little girl wailed. "Were we naughty?"

Korra patted the two girls on the head. "No, no. He was just very very busy so he sent his right hand man to help him out." She stood up straight and turned to Mako with a grin. "Kids, meet Mako Claus!"

Mako's face tinted pink and he scratched the back of his head shyly. The kids flooded to him, asking too many questions at once.

"Hey now, one at a time, you crazy small people!" Bolin called, a laugh in his voice. The children settled, eyes wide at all the gifts that were now stacked neatly on a snowless patch of dead grass that Mako had cleared.

"There's one for each of you," Asami said as she picked up the first present and handed it to a boy that seemed to be nearing his early teens. "Merry Christmas, sweetie," she said kindly.

One by one, the children got a present. Mako had made sure to put the essentials in each large box. Every child got a warm jacket, a hat, a scarf, some gloves, and some preserved food to last them for a little bit. Asami had apparently snuck in some soft plush toys and dolls as well, sharply stating that "Those kids need something to play with, after all!"

With the all of the gifts passed out, the four teens hung back, watching the kids squeal with delight as they opened the boxes, tossing the ugly brown wrapping paper aside and trying on their coats and scarves. They modeled each item of clothing before squeezing their toys tight and chomping down on the dried foods that Mako had taken great care to wrap neatly in little lunch packets. Too many thank you's flew about, and the teens had given up on saying "You're welcome!" entirely.

Bolin turned to his brother. "Was this really all your idea?"

Mako shrugged. "Pretty much. Asami helped with the toys, and you and Korra did some manual labor to get them here." He chuckled. "But yeah, this was my idea."

Eyes wide with wonder, Bolin asked, "Why?"

The Firebender didn't need to say anything out loud. He knew his brother knew why.

"They remind you of me when I was little, huh?"

A nod, and Mako let out a whoosh of a sigh. "Yep. All I see when I look at them is a bunch of mini Bolins, and something right here," he pressed his hand to his chest where his heart was, "Something right there just…"

"Just what?"

"I just need to help all I can, Bo," Mako replied, eyes serious as he watched the children run and play with Korra and Asami.

Bolin grinned widely, punching Mako's shoulder affectionately. "You know, Mako," he said, waiting for Mako to turn his head to face him, "You're one heck of an older brother."

Mako smiled in return before the two of them settled near a tree to watch the kids and the girls tire themselves out with all their playing.

The snow slowed to a complete halt, leaving the air clear and free of precipitation. The temperature remained icy, but the bitter wind had finally disappeared for good. The winter storm had finally faded away into nothingness, and Christmas was finally allowed to commence.

A mischievous smile on his face, Mako mumbled, "Ho ho ho. Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night."

"What was that?" Bolin asked. His head titled sideways.

"It was nothing," Mako said, a hint of a smile on his face, "Nothing at all."


End file.
